


What is the Way ?

by sometimes_she_writes



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Season 3 AU, it will have fluff later i swear
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-19
Updated: 2021-01-19
Packaged: 2021-03-17 21:01:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,213
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28855518
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sometimes_she_writes/pseuds/sometimes_she_writes
Summary: Din Djarin is lost, the child is gone, what is he to do now ?What prospects for life does he have ? It was always bounty to bounty, survival of the fittest and all...The child had turned his life around, made him see the world differently, made him care. So what is the way, now ?
Relationships: Din Djarin & Cara Dune, Din Djarin/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 4





	What is the Way ?

**Author's Note:**

> So basically my ideas for season 3 and also just some self indulgent Din Djarin content ! I just love him so much, poor bb boy so I want to explore his inner struggles after what happened but don't worry we will have baby yoda back bc it just wouldn't be fair and we want dad din back ! Also I'm gonna try to tie all of this with the other events within the star wars universe bc we just have so much content out there... Anyways I ramble but hope you guys like this !

The Child was gone. The Jedi had taken him into his arms, walked out and never returned. It was over, it was done, the mission, the task had been accomplished, he was brought back to his people. 

He couldn’t keep his eyes out from the open doors, the two had left, crossing bodies of dead stormtroopers droids on the way, setting out for who knows where in the galaxy after taking off in whatever ship the mysterious Jedi had come from, all of this having happened only a few minutes ago, his ears remembering the sound of the blasting engine flying away. The Mandalorian was quiet, too quiet even for his usual demeanor, silent, frozen in place, staring emptily into the void. The Child had slowly disappeared from his sight, something he still had a difficulty to grasp. His eyes were fixated onto the hallway, now empty, left with a ruin, broken rusting metals dispersed all over the place.

It did not feel in any way real, all of it, as if time had stopped the moment he walked away, he wanted it to be nothing more than a fever dream, a nightmare to wake up from or a horrible hallucination he couldn’t get out of but it was none of that and deep down he knew. The harsh reality was slowly setting in, he felt a pit in his stomach and gradually his heart sinking. He felt pain, unbearable, grief, maddening and heartbreak, crushing his soul. What a cruel world he lived in, he thought he had gotten used to it, that he had managed to stay indifferent. He thought that it would keep him safe, hold him out and let him survive yet here he was, at his weakest, on the edge of mental collapse and wanting nothing more than to die in this very instant. 

He did not notice at first, tears had streamed down his face, so suddenly. He then noticed how warm he felt, his cheeks were flushed and puffy, he looked injured. It was too much for him, it was too hot, the temperature grew rapidly within his body, he felt now as if he was boiling up. He felt sick, about to faint, he couldn’t bear this pain. 

\- Mando… he heard Cara Dune whisper, hoping to bring him back to life.

He blinked his eyes, he was waking up bit by bit, slowly gaining back his consciousness. 

\- The Child… He is… he is… gone… Isn’t it ? he asked, a small stutter appearing in his speech for the first time and a soft trembling in his voice. 

He was begging for confirmation of the reality, he hated it, how humiliating it felt, he wanted closure or rather hoped for it to be possible for him. He could sense her hesitation, she pondered for a while, his jaw tensed up as he waited for the answer. 

\- Yes, I’m… I’m sorry Mando, she finally admitted in defeat. 

Of course, yes, that was what had happened, he now remembered and bitterly admitted to himself. Yes, he had been the one who opened the doors for the Jedi, the others had been angry, warning him not to but he had looked at his child, him, with his great big eyes, full of hope while looking at the screen, showing the mysterious figure in the hallway. He had believed him. Yes, he had let him go, he had given him his permission. 

_Oh Maker, why did you do this to me ?_

The Mandalorian nodded, thanking Dune for telling him the truth.

\- We should leave, she suggested after a few minutes of silence. 

He still looked at the hallway, contemplative.

\- You’re right… he answered, he had to move on.

He was slowly waking up, becoming more aware of his surroundings and regaining his senses bit by bit. His eyes started to scan the room though he still faced the same direction, it was hard to let go of it, going only left to right for now, recollecting where he was. 

He then noticed his helmet, upright, lying on the floor on his right side. Shame took him over, all this time, he had been exposed, vulnerable, naked in front of all of them. His face, they had seen him, he knew, he could feel their discomfort over his discovery of it, they had tried to respect his creed but it was too late, it had been broken. It was only meant for him, his child, his sweet powerful little creature, to his request. The Child had pleaded, knowing he wouldn’t see him again, and for his clan of two he had done it. 

* * *

The road back was silent. The Mandalorian had put his helmet back on, everyone else had agreed to let the incident go unmentioned and pretend as if nothing ever happened, no one uttered a word. A part of him was angry about it, not wanting to be pitied and looked down at, but another was grateful that they would spare him from further shame. 

They finally left the imperial ship, a relief to everyone. Fett took them back, charging himself to drop each of them off to their prefered destination. Fett could tell something had happened from the second they had entered, the silence was deafening, uncomfortable to hear, nauseating even, the mood was sour and the child was very evidently absent. Many questions had sprouted into his mind but it was clear no one would answer so he kept them to himself. 

Bo-Katan and her associate would be the first to leave the ship, their destination being the closest planet on the list compared to the others. Nevarro would be next, dropping Dune off to continue her marshal duties, then Tatooine, the final stop for both Fett and Fennec Shand, leaving them to take care of a mutually shared business. The Mandalorian still hadn’t answered the question, well it hadn’t been asked to him yet actually, Fett had read the room, too tense for him, so his destination was still unknown. 

They were approaching the planet, some industrial place, typical for rebels and other organizations, the good ones, the bad ones and those in the grey, to meet up safely, reuniting in the hidden corners of the large city. They were slowly arriving, close to landing and the bounty hunter was getting tired of Bo-Katan’s presence. She had glanced at him incessantly, ever since they had been on the ship, it was getting on his nerves. He knew why she couldn’t keep staring, she still wouldn’t accept his gift, too stupidly proud to do so, it didn’t matter how many times he tried to make himself clear about it, she wouldn’t budge, honor talk and all, how fucking annoying, he thought. 

The ship eventually landed and right before leaving, of course, she was going to go over this all over again. She walked towards him, reeking insistence. 

\- We are not done yet, I must fight you to acquire it ! You have nothing else to do now ! The Child is gone ! Mandalore is all you have left, admit it ! You can’t run away from this ! Let me win it with honor, for the good of our people, for what you have left !

That had been quite bold from her but also quite impulsive, a huge strategic error to anger the beskar cladded mercenary.

\- Listen, I told you I don’t want it ! You want to lead Mandalore ? Go on, be my guest ! I don’t care for this shit ! Just leave me alone and kriffing take it !! 

He just had enough of her. He was furious, angry and exhausted, he wanted it to end. He took the dark saber and handed it to her firmly, forcing it onto her, this was his final decision, whether she liked it or not. 

She finally accepted the weapon, looking down at the floor, feeling defeated. He wouldn’t change his mind and she supposed, with hindsight that it would be better than the saber being taken by anybody else. Even her associate, Koska Reeves, had slowly taken on the Mandalorian’s side, if he wasn’t interested why force him to be ? It was war after all and they had to be pragmatic, if he didn’t want to do it, she should, she was competent, capable, adorning all the qualities to be a leader and it was her goal after all. She felt wounded, she wished to be worthy of the weapon, regain their land with honor but she had to agree, if they wanted to win, save lives, she had to take some of her pride away.

\- Par Manda'yaim (For Mandalore), you’ll do it, he said, this time more sincerely, asking for a promise.

She nodded. Reeves smiled at him, a rightful decision.

\- Par Manda'yaim (For Mandalore), repeated Bo-Katan, vowing to him and the nation for who she would do all for. 

They had made a truce. He wished them an honest farewell and good luck for the future, much was still to be done, he knew she would do right by him and that gave him some kind of hope, something to believe in.

\- Where will you go ? asked Dune, feeling as it was safe to ask as he had spoken a little while ago.

It felt different to talk, now that she had seen him, he felt vulnerable and he didn’t want to be. He wanted to forget the whole affair, he wanted to be nothing but a stranger.

\- Same as you, I’ll go to Nevarro, I’ll find some bounty work, gotta make a living somehow… he said coldly, discarding her concern by his tone. He didn’t want to hear her worry over him. 

\- Right, commented Dune bitterly, feeling her friend slipping away. 

\- I’ll finally bring this one to justice, she said looking over at the unconscious body of Moff Gideon.

He had almost forgotten about him, having been simply somewhere else in his mind, more of a nowhere if he had to be truthful, an empty space, seemingly never ending, dark and foggy, vague and unstable. 

He looked in his direction. He was down on the floor in shackles, he hoped he was in pain from the knock-out, he deserved it. His face would always bring him disgust, him, this imperial terror, a criminal of its own kind, him, who had inflicted horrors to so many in the galaxy, he, who left so many scarred people from his passage. 

He doubted that the sentence the Rebellion would give him would ever be enough, compared to all of his crimes, compared to the pain and trauma he had caused but this wasn’t his decision to take. He would have killed him on the spot, that’s what he would have done, end him once and for all, never let him breathe one more second but again it wasn’t up to him. 

It was up to Dune, him and Bo-Katan might have shared the same opinion about the rightful consequences for the criminal, but contrary to her, he did not object to Dune’s and the Rebellion’s handling of the subject. He thought it unbalanced justice, yes, though humanly understandable. He respected Dune’s belief in the organization, the ideals that came with them, with this desire to start anew.

The rest of the flight was rather uninteresting to tell, Fett and Shand were discussing in the cockpit while the bounty hunter and the marshal stayed awkwardly silent. Time passed so awfully slowly, it felt like torture, the air was stiff and so were they. The Mandalorian was closed off, having retreated back, hiding somewhere, who knew where, dealing alone with the aftermath of this mission. Dune was saddened, unable to reach him, she had to let it go, she finally concluded, refocus, think of matters within her control, within her ability to create change and offer some help, in Nevarro that would be possible, at least she had that. 

* * *

There he was, back at the beginning, it had been long since he had been on the sandy planet. His boots had recognized the volcanic soil, dry and rough, his eyes looked at the horizon, at the warm muddy place and at the sun slowly making its appearance, it was still early in the morning.

It was a chaotic city, the bounty hunters flocked in the streets, the merchants yelled in the markets, hoping to please them, the local artisans having specialized themselves to create the most perfect and appropriate items for these clients and the average population went about their day, adapting to those changing times. 

\- I guess this is it, isn’t it ? 

He stopped and turned. Dune was right there, still and seemingly collected with her always upstanding posture. But she was really nervous, waiting, boring into his soul, how she did this through the helmet he didn’t know, she cared deeply for her friend and he felt always unworthy of her kindness. 

\- I’m sure you have much to do… he said, as if she had answered instead of him, it was cowardly, he knew that but he couldn’t handle this.

There was a small silence. 

\- I do, you’re right about that, accepting it was all she would get from him. 

She nodded her head and gave him a wry smile.

\- ‘Til next time Mando, take care… 


End file.
